LETTER: Mitt Romney took hypocrisy to extreme

The most important winner on election night was something truly endangered during what Conan O'Brien called "our long national nightmare," the 2012 campaign: objective truth. Neil Newhouse, a Romney operative, said that Romney's campaign was not going to be dictated by fact-checkers. What? Even Bush the younger, convinced by the Neo-Cons that Saddam Hussein must be ousted, sent Cheney to the CIA to demand "facts" that could be spun and sold to the public. Never mind that Curve Ball lived up to his name as the Bush Administration ignored the warning of German intelligence; Curve Ball's made-up story would do to justify the invasion. And throwing in Colin Powell's "testimony" was the cherry on the cake.

But Mr. Romney, dubbed Etch-a-Sketch and Shape Shifter, as he pandered to the base and then pivoted to a more moderate stance for the general election, was certain that anti-Obamaism was strong enough that truth didn't matter. In so doing he disgraced his religion and his principled parents. A co-religionist, Jon Huntsman, would have presented Obama with a much more serious challenge as he was a qualified candidate of integrity; but he didn't pass muster with The Base.

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Mitt Romney is a whited sepulchre: a tomb whitewashed to be pleasing to the eye but which covers up unclean things. Even his statements that were not lies did not tell the whole truth. He was able to bring health care to Massachusetts, not because he reached across the aisle (he established a private elevator because he did not want to engage with Democrats) but because Ted Kennedy was so passionate about the issue that he smoothed the way for Romney; and his Olympics turnaround could not have occurred without taxpayer support, something he would if he could happily withdraw from Big Bird. (Hurray for our athletes; but you're on your own, you poor kids trying to get ready for school).

All politicians exaggerate and spin, but the 2012 fact-checking "pants on fires" that Romney racked up and for which he was unrepentant were just astounding. Romnesia? No, forgetfulness it was not; although even he must have had trouble keeping track of what he had said to whom.

Jesus uses the whited sepulchre image in Matthew 23:27 to decry hypocrisy; I use it to decry Romney's political record which is hypocrisy on steroids. He looks like someone Central Casting had sent to play the president but if we can't disentangle that kind of make-believe from reality we are in serious trouble.

So for President Obama to have a one-on-one with Romney is really disturbing. Not Paul Krugman nor Joseph Stiglitiz, acclaimed economists, but the venture (vulture?) capitalist who lost by insulting voters and offering simplistic stale solutions larded with lies! Does not bode well for a second term that reflects a positive learning curve!

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